Bipolar Disorder Research Gets $1 Billion Boost From Stanley Family

The Stanley Family Foundation's latest $280 million gift to the Broad Institute aims to accelerate new treatments for bipolar and schizophrenia.

Mar. 31, 2026 at 1:06pm

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The Stanley Family Foundation has donated more than $1 billion to the Broad Institute's Stanley Center for Psychiatric Research over the years, inspired by the family's personal experience with bipolar disorder. The latest $280 million gift will fund seven more years of research into the genetic causes and potential new therapies for bipolar and schizophrenia, conditions that the Stanleys say have been historically underfunded despite their immense societal burden.

Why it matters

The Stanleys' massive philanthropic commitment to the Broad Institute highlights the crucial role that private funding can play in advancing research and treatments for serious mental illnesses like bipolar disorder, which are often overlooked by traditional government and industry sources of funding. Their focus on a team-based, collaborative approach aims to drive faster progress than the more siloed academic research models of the past.

The details

Jon Stanley, whose own experience with bipolar disorder as a young man inspired his family's giving, says his father Ted wanted to create a "Manhattan Project" for mental health research at the Broad Institute. The institute's Stanley Center has already made major discoveries about the genetic risk factors for bipolar and schizophrenia, but researchers acknowledge there is still much more to be learned about the underlying causes of these illnesses. The latest $280 million gift will allow the center to recruit more people with bipolar disorder to study their genetic variants and accelerate clinical trials for potential new treatments.

  • Jon Stanley first experienced a manic episode and was hospitalized in 1987.
  • The Stanley Family Foundation was founded to support research into bipolar disorder and schizophrenia.
  • The Broad Institute launched in 2004 with the Stanleys as founding donors.
  • The Stanley Family Foundation has now donated over $1 billion to the Broad Institute's Stanley Center for Psychiatric Research.

The players

Jon Stanley

A founding board member of the Treatment Advocacy Center who developed bipolar disorder at age 19, inspiring his family's philanthropic focus on mental health research.

Ted Stanley

Jon's late father, a billionaire retailer who wanted to create a "Manhattan Project" for mental health research and donated hundreds of millions to the Broad Institute.

Vada Stanley

Jon's late mother, who along with her husband Ted, dedicated their philanthropy to supporting research into bipolar disorder and schizophrenia.

Ben Neale

Co-director of the Stanley Center for Psychiatric Research at the Broad Institute, leading efforts to identify genetic risk factors and accelerate new treatments for mental illnesses.

Sylvie Raver

A senior director at the Milken Institute's Science Philanthropy Accelerator who emphasizes the crucial role of private philanthropy in funding research for serious mental illnesses.

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What they’re saying

“We've made major discoveries of genes that dramatically increase the risk of developing these illnesses. We know we only have a small fraction of what is out there to be discovered.”

— Ben Neale, Co-director, Stanley Center for Psychiatric Research, Broad Institute

“When you marry capacity, like what the family has, and understanding and personal resonance with the topic, like they have as well, philanthropy is really primed to do exciting things.”

— Sylvie Raver, Senior Director, Milken Institute Science Philanthropy Accelerator

“He didn't think he needed all that he made. But he was very interested in making more so he could give it away. So, who am I to overrule what he thought?”

— Jon Stanley

What’s next

The Broad Institute's Stanley Center for Psychiatric Research plans to recruit more people with bipolar disorder to study their genetic variants and accelerate clinical trials for potential new treatments over the next seven years with the latest $280 million gift.

The takeaway

The Stanley family's extraordinary $1 billion-plus commitment to the Broad Institute's mental health research underscores how impactful private philanthropy can be in driving progress on complex, underfunded challenges like bipolar disorder and schizophrenia. Their focus on a collaborative, team-based approach aims to spur faster breakthroughs than the more siloed academic models of the past.